To Walk Where I Cannot
by AreiaCananaid
Summary: She smiled at him. The expression was filled with joy, but it was also sad. It was a smile that lingered in the memories of the past, a smile that remembered a friendship, not one that encouraged it forwards. Suddenly, he understood; he knew what she was about to do.


**A/N:** This is a short that I wrote for Storm Dragon Wolf Princess who wanted a Link/Midna fic. So this fic is a tad bit longer than I had expected, but you my esteemed reader should not be put off by the length, I wanted to get deeper into things and I think it was worth it. Also, the style might seem a little odd at first, as I start this tale in the past perfect tense, but that is because I start out dealing with Link's memories. Link and Midna are tricky to write, because they seem from the start to be doomed not ever be able to stay together, but I hope you find it satisfactory. I was greatly inspired by Plato's symposium, specifically Aristophanes' speech.

**Summary:** She smiled at him. The expression was filled neither with her sarcastic humor or happiness. It was filled with joy but it was also sad. It was a smile that lingered in the memories of the past, a smile that remembered a friendship, not one that encouraged it forwards. He could read the story of their journey and life together on the gentle curve of her soft lips. Suddenly, he understood, he knew what she was about to do. (All the times he followed her and the one time he could not)

* * *

To Walk Where I Cannot Follow

"I found you!"

Those had been the first words she had spoken to him. They had sent a jolt of panic down his already fear-numbed, confused, and horror stricken body. He had felt his hackles rise in a fashion similar to the way the hair had used to prickle on the nape of his neck. That sudden realization had only filled him with more panic. He had found that he had almost not been able to breathe properly for a moment- the sensation had been so strong. He had not known where he was, what had happened to him, or why. But even as terror had tried to claim him, he felt a low growl rumble inside his throat. The phrase, 'fighting like a cornered rat,' had come to mind and he had vowed to meet whatever end his was about to face with a fight.

She had been different than the beast that had caught him though, and of this he had become more certain as she spoke again, piercing the dark and paying no heed to the bars of his prison. Her speech had been reminiscent to the way she carried her impish body; her words, as she had freed him, had been sarcastic, bold, and condescending. It was as if she had been asserting herself as his master. Though he had hated to admit it, her confidence, which seemed nearly to border on arrogance, was something he had taken a small measure of comfort in, for he was lost in more ways than one. He had not even known if his village and family were alright and he certainly did not know why he had been thrust so violently into such confusion and pain, why he was trapped in the form of a wolf, or even how long his predicament would last. Also, she had set him free, saved him. He had thought then, as he did now, that that had to count for something. So, when she had commanded him to follow her through the murky moldering passages of the dungeon, he had, though his mind had been made up that he would never trust her.

~X~

He had been attacked by the people of his own village shortly after being freed from the castle. He had had no cause to blame them however, for almost everywhere had been under the veil of darkness, as if it were night, and nights were even blacker. His village had been on the border of this blanket of blackness and had been attacked just hours previous to his arrival. The cinch in the situation was that he had born a strong resemblance to the shadowy foe in his form as large grey wolf at the time. For a moment, he had not known what to do. If he fought back, he would hurt those he cared for. Then he had heard her voice. It was almost warm with the light of a sudden idea to simply scare away his attackers without causing them harm. For her plan to work he had needed to get to the high ground and it was far too high and dark for him to make the jump and have clear footing. She had merely rolled her eyes, the sarcasm flooding back.

"I suppose I'll have to guide you to safe footing," she had sighed heavily. "Must I do everything myself?"

She had levitated near the first jump and beckoned to him.

"Follow me."

He had followed.

~X~

Every insult and degrading word she had spoken to him had made him bristle as they hunted for Hyrule's spirits' stolen light. This task they adopted in order to free his homeland from the clutches of night. It had made his hackles rise in some animalistic from of anger, and a growl rumble deep inside him as she treated him nearly like a slave. And yet, he had also known that if he did not have her direction and experience on his side, he would have already lost his way or worse. She had been using him to achieve whatever ends she so desired, but he had needed her. That fact had been unavoidable. He had decided that if bearing her insults, and the degradation it brought, would help him save those he cared for, then he would. She had left him to do most all the battling, which meant she needed his sword on her side. She had been using him but, in a way, he was using her right back. So, when she had said that she would guide him to safe footing or direct him to an enemy's weak point, he had followed her. For, although he had made up his mind not to trust her personally, he had trusted she would not lead him astray because she needed him.

~X~

Whenever they returned the light to the spirit that guarded a province and darkness had been dispelled, he had been able to regain his normal shape until they plunged into a twilight shadowed province again to cleanse the land. Life had been no less hard when he was in the form of a hylain. There was still evil that needed to be banished after the dark was defeated. There had also been something called a fused shadow they were after, which was the main thing she had been using him to get.

He had gotten burned in the Goron mines on a quest to obtain a piece of that fused shadow. She had demanded he retrieve these fused shadows, though she had not taken any pains to explain to him fully why she needed them or what power they held exactly. Perhaps it had been in retaliation to her lack of sharing information, or perhaps it had been little more than a fool's pride but, for some sake of disgruntled feelings, he had not told her about that particularly nasty injury or the few others he had sustained.

She had found out herself that night when he had attempted to clean and dress them himself in secret. Looking back, he could see that his bone deep fatigue and beginnings of a fever had not aided him in his 'stealth'. It was actually surprising that she had not caught him sooner. His pounding head had rung for hours afterwards, it seemed, with her harsh words: 'careless fool, idiot, letting yourself get killed,' all mixed up with her arrogant sarcasm. He had almost been too tired to let it bother him, almost. In the end, she had helped him finish dressing the wounds with the herbs he had prepared and had made sure he slept.

That night, through the whirl of feverish pain that plagued him, he had felt a presence very near him. He had opened his weary eyes to see her keeping watch both for and over him. That had been very strange for, at night, she usually just used her strange impish skills to morph into the shadows. She had not noticed that he had been awake and so he had watched her silently as she stared dully at the stars and cold moon overhead. 'Perhaps,' he remembered thinking, 'perhaps sharing the body of an animal for so long had sharpened his senses, or perhaps she had let her guard slip a little.' Because, for the first time, he thought he could actually feel her. He felt like he had almost been able to hear her, though not in any physical sense.

He could sense, that night, that she felt almost as lost as he had. He had almost been able feel something akin to pain somewhere near her heart. Her one visible eye had seemed as vast as a rift in the earth as it absorbed the light from the night sky but reflected nothing back. It was almost like it had been made of the same black patches of night where the stars' light never reached. She gazed out with such a look of sorrow anger and regret that it heightened the emptiness he had sensed before it burned suddenly bright, flaring as brightly as the fires of a forge under the use of the bellows with resolve, hatred, and determination. It was as if she had refused to give in to the despair and loss that gnawed at her being. She would go down fighting or not at all.

Although he had wanted to kick himself for thinking it, he admired that. He had found in that moment that, as much as he tried to hate her, he could not. He had begun to understand her, all because of that quiet moment in the night when he had seen the barest glimpse of her heart. So, the next day, when his injuries had calmed in their rawness and pain, and when her command and sarcastic bluster came back in full, he had followed her. He had been slightly surprised to find that his willingness was not only for his kingdom or himself this time. There had been the smallest fraction of his obedience that was actually for her sake.

~X~

Their quest to obtain the final fused shadow had been a challenging maze of riddles and passages in the lakebed temple. Her advice and thoughts, when combined with his own, had helped to guide them both. Her dry derisive comments about their predicament and the many perils they faced and encountered had made him smile and chuckle more than once for they were against their foes and situation rather than him for once. He even had the nerve and sharp tongue to join in a few times, and she had given him the first smile of genuine mirth, free from any mocking, that he had ever seen.

He had also learned that she had held no great love of giant bloated slimy toads. It was a fact that he had taken quite a bit of vindictive pleasure in teasing her about it. He had enjoyed being on the top of their verbal sparring for once. Although they may have been working together far better than before, a chasm of mistrust had still separated them. He had known that that she held no interest in saving Hyrule like he did. The knowledge that had haunted him the most, however, was that he had known she could have very well betrayed him once she had what she wanted. Thinking thusly, he had almost been reluctant to help her gain the last piece of the fused shadows. However, he had also known that if the very little she had told him was true, he would have needed them as much as she.

When they had returned to the lake's spirit spring and had been set upon by the usurping king Zant himself, the cause of all his kingdom's pain, he had never been so happy, yet scared to have been so wrong in how he judged her. He had tried to fight but had been completely caught off guard, knocked to the ground and trapped in the form of a wolf. That was when she had tried to help him, but she too had been caught and held helpless. He had tried, in turn, to come to her aid but was knocked almost unconscious by a magic blast, left as helpless as she. He had been unable to do anything but watch as she refused their enemy at every turn. He had watched horrified as her sudden and unexpected show of loyalty had nearly claimed her life. The usurper also claimed the fused shadows that had cost them so much time and so many struggles to get.

She had tried to protect him, that was all that he had been able to think as he ran through the storm that had risen in a desperate attempt to get help. Her limp, barely breathing form had been draped across his wolfish back. He had a pounding headache from the effects of Zant's magic that had trapped him once more in the form of a beast, but all that seemed unimportant at the time as he ran a race to save her. He had almost thought he had been able to feel her life force drain away with every one of her rasping breaths. Though he could not speak in his form as a wolf, he had whined softly at her, '_just hang on, please hang on.'_

"Please, just help Link."

What she had thought would be her last words and thoughts had been focused on him, and his plight rather than her own. But it had not been the end for her. He had made it to the princess just in time, and the princess had very nearly sacrificed herself to save her. She had given them both the information that they needed to break the grip of the magic that lingered inside to fetter him in the body of a canine.

Once they had fled the castle, it had been surrounded by a dark magic barrier, as if their enemy were mocking them. As they both glared at the latest device of the enemy, they both made up their minds to track down the usurper king and reclaimed the fused shadows that had been stolen. And that time, they had sworn to do it together. They had finally understood each other. They had finally been able see each other and they had found that they actually liked what they saw.

She had pointed out the direction in which they needed to head and he had followed were she indicated, their new determination giving new purpose to their every step.

~X~

When they had entered the Gerudo desert, hot on their enemy's trail after they had found the master sword and severed the usurper's spell, she had stopped him.

"Wait, Link."

For the first time, she had almost looked nervous, unsure of herself. She had clasped her small hands behind her back and spoken hesitantly.

"There is something I want you to hear."

She had spoken openly, plainly, and honestly about her people and where she came from, what they needed to do, and how finding the mirror of twilight in this realm was the only way to enter her kingdom's domain. He also learned her realm was the same realm where the usurper ruled.

"You'll come with me, won't you?" she lightly touched his check and stared deep into his eyes.

She had seemed to hesitate, wanting to see if things between them were the same despite her confession to being of the same race as their enemy. For his part, he could care less about her heritage. He knew who she was and, for the first time, he found that he trusted her, and trusted her implicitly. In the end, he had only grinned at her. He nodded his head once and gestured at the blistering desert that stood before them.

"Lead the way, I'll follow you."

"Remind me why I followed you in here again?" he had asked later as he rolled desperately out of the path of the giant bone dragon—who resided in the arbiters grounds of the desert—and his vicious claws.

"Because you love me and could not bear to be parted form me," she answered back sarcastically. "Quick! On your left!"

~X~

The mirror they had been after had been broken, its peaces scattered across Hyrule, but together they had worked and fought to get them back. The location to one of those illusive pieces was in the Mountain of Snowpeak, and its heights were rightly named. They had found themselves caught in the middle of a blizzard high atop the peaks. A dense snow cloud had been hugging the mountaintop and letting all below it feel its wrath with fog and dense snow. The world around the two struggling travelers had been died a silent grey-white and that was all they could see in any direction. They had hardly been able to see their hands in front of their faces. By a stroke of fortune, they had happened to blunder into a cave carved into the mountain rock and had wormed their way inside the narrow opening. They had no choice then but to wait for the weather to relent enough for them to move onwards. He had nearly been pacing with boredom after a couple hours and she had been no less restless. The waiting game had ever been a loathsome one. Finally, they had both sat down in silence for a long while until she had yawned loudly.

"This is boring and so is all this silence. Do you know any good tales of your people?"

He had at first shaken his head in a negative gesture. He had, of course, known many but, at that moment, he could not recall any narratives except for small children's village tales. He had known those would have only annoyed her. He had thought hard for a moment. Suddenly, the beginning of a great hyrulian epic he had once heard a traveling minstrel sing came to mind. He could not exactly remember how it flowed in its original poetic verses, but he could recite the general story.

"When the three goddesses first fashioned hylians, and all their other beings, every one of their creations had two heads, four arms, and four legs," he had begun.

She had given him a slightly derisive glance once she heard his apparently ridiculous start, but had appeared interested to see where he would go with this tale.

"The people they had created were happy because they were strong but the goddesses soon became displeased with their creations; they feared their strength to be too great. So, in anger and precaution they spilt every one of them in two, and…" he had hesitated for a moment when he suddenly realized that he had forgotten how the story went after that. He could recall the adventure bit that followed after the beginning, but he could not for the life of him recall the apex of the intro.

"And," she had asked him impatiently when he suddenly stopped. She had almost been completely captivated by his tale and her one visible eye was fixed upon him in expectation.

He knew he would not remember so he had grinned instead of trying.

"And that is why everybody has a shadow," he finished proudly.

Her curiosity had faded instantly and she had scowled at him.

"That was quite possibly the most anticlimactic story I have ever heard."

He had felt his grin widen until it had exploded in a helpless display of mirth. He had practically howled with laughter at the pouting look upon her face. She had responded by crossing her small arms in annoyance. She had attempted to give him her most scathing glare but had ended up rolling her eyes and smiling. Her light chuckling had soon accompanied his deeper laughter. Shortly after, the snowfall had lightened enough for them to see about ten feet in any direction and so they had set off again. He had followed her out of the cave and together they continued their trek up the mountain.

~X~

Once they had finally collected all the mirror fragments and reassembled the portal to her world, she had spoken softly and reminiscently about her land. It was then that he had learned what she truly was. She was no mere imp, she was the princess of the Twili who had been usurped by Zant and then trapped in her current form. She had fled her people and kingdom.

As soon as he had heard that, he found he fully understood the pain, hatred, resentment, confusion, and shame that he had sensed in her that one dark night, which had seemed so long ago to him, even then.

She had confessed to him that her people had a legend of a beast that would be a hero, which was why she had decided to use him when she saw him. She had only wanted revenge and to free her own people, she had not cared for his world at all. But when she had seen his, and the princess Zelda's, sacrifices and selfless willingness to go to almost any length to help their people, her heart had changed. She had realized that one realm could not be saved without saving the other, and she had declared then that she would have it no other way.

Together they would save both kingdoms, or together they would die trying, they had sworn as they stepped towards the portal. Once they had entered the realm of twilight, she had stopped him again before they went onwards.

"Um, listen Link… can I ask you one last selfish favor? Regardless of my reasons, I left behind those who considered me their ruler. Even now, as they suffer, they believe help will come to this world. But if they were to see that their only help would come in the form of a hideous imp, it might let them down, don't you think? Do you mind if I continue to hide in your shadow, if just for a little while longer?"

"Of course not," he had told her, without hesitation. He had never seen her look more relieved. She had often hid in his shadow before, when he was in human form, but this was the first time she had asked.

He had finally fully understood how she felt and why she was the way she was. Her condescending words her attitude, she wanted to be respected and hold that deference that she used to wield as a ruler before she fell; before she had been deposed and cursed like him, left to wander with nothing. She did not want those who had once looked up to her to see her now, even though she would willingly fight and die for them in any form. For his part, he would gladly give her the respect she craved and the anonymity. It was because that he had believed then that she would do the same for him. She was his friend, his shield brother, his comrade in arms.

As if to cover up what she perceived as weakness she had added curtly, "Lead the way."

"Why ever did I let you lead the way? And what in twilight's name possessed me to follow after?" she bemoaned accusingly later as he fled through the Twili palace with a stolen sol, perused by countless dark servants of the enemy.

He had grinned widely as he turned sharply down a side passage and replied.

"It's probably because of your unwavering love and devotion to me. Oh, and that you cannot bear to see us parted."

He had waited so long to be able to get back at her for that one. Despite their perilous predicament he had felt quite pleased with himself, especially since she had walked right into that one, and she had known it too.

~X~

After that, they had battled and defeated the usurper king of the Twilight, and then his puppet master Ganondorf, who had been the real mastermind behind all their struggles. With the aid of the princess and the Resistance, staunch allies they had formed on their quest, they had ended the reign of darkness. Both of their kingdoms had been saved and she had even regained her natural form.

It had taken him quite a while to get used to her being taller than him. He remembered thinking, the first time that he saw her true form, that she was beautiful in an exotic sort of way. There was no denying that. However during that last battle she had nearly been killed, or at least he had thought her so for a time, and he had never before been made to feel such fear pain loss and anguish as he had that day- though he now was beginning to fear he might have to experience it anew. He had realized then that he cared for her, and deeply. He cared for her life more than he did his own.

~X~

All of this he remembered as he stood once more in the Arbiter's grounds of the desert, with both princesses at his side. She was going to return to her kingdom, this they all knew. But, as time wore slowly on, he suddenly began to feel something amiss.

There was a quiet moment of awkward silence before Midna spoke.

"Well, I guess this is farewell, huh? Light and shadow cannot mix as we know."

The feeling grew suddenly stronger as she spoke thus. Her words sent a silent whisper of warning through his thoughts but, for the moment, he could not place why.

"But never forget there is another world bound to this one," she finished.

Zelda nodded.

"Light and shadow cannot exist without the other, they are like two sides of the same coin."

"Your heart and your words are true, if all in Hyrule are like you… I think you will do alright." Midna gave the princess one of her rare genuine smiles before her russet eyes sought out his and softened with so much emotion he could not even come close to reading what was in her heart.

"Zelda is right. As long as the mirror is around, we two could meet again."

She smiled once more and it was filled neither with sarcastic humor or happiness. The expression was filled with joy but it was also sad. It was a smile that seemed to linger in the memories of the past, a smile that remembered a friendship, not one that encouraged it forwards. He could read the story of their journey and life together on the gentle curve of her soft lips. Suddenly, he understood as surely as he had understood what she thought that one night that she had looked after him, the first night he had seen a piece of her heart. He knew what she was about to do.

"Link, I…" She closed her eyes and he could see a single tear hand on the edge of her long lashes.

She trailed off but he could hear what she would have said next.

'_Link, I know you understand why this cannot be, why we cannot be.' _

And he did. He knew that what she planned was the only right choice. He knew that it was necessary to protect both worlds, but why then did it feel so wrong, so cold? Perhaps because he knew that, for him, it would mean an empty shadow. There would be no quipping words, no reassuring presence, and no companion. The only thing to follow in his steps would be nothing but a dark splotch of obstructed light.

Two sides of the same coin, one that faces the sun to fight their way into daylight and the other that faced the shadow to guard both their backs from night. They would always have this; such was the nature of their two worlds in a perpetual balance of yin and yang. But they would never again touch each other, see each other, guide each other, or hear each other's voice. They would never follow in each other's steps, or simply stand side by side.

Worst of all, was the knowledge that, if he did nothing, it would just happen. She would shatter the mirror and disappear from his life forever, leaving him trapped in his own realm and her in her own. It was right. He knew it was right, but was it so very wrong to keep the link alive? All of these thoughts flooded through his mind and he found his body moving of its own accord, and he did not stop himself.

"I know what you seek to do, and I would beg you to stop!" he nearly yelled in pained desperation, "please stop," his voice now was little louder than a whisper.

She froze, her hand halfway lifted, and stared at him. The smile was gone from her face now and her eyes seemed glisten with mist.

"Link…" she whispered back, her tone almost sounding defeated. He guessed that she had been hoping he would not have figured it out until it was already too late. "This is bigger than either one of us."

"Alone, perhaps, but not together," he said, his voice nearly shaking. "If there was danger that threatened our worlds, I would have no other desire than to stand at your back and follow you to face it. The danger of threats to our worlds may be greater if they stay connected, but we could be stronger too if we are together."

He was standing right in front of her now, just before the steps that led to the mirror.

"I would have followed you to whatever end. I have been following you since the day we met and I do not want you to go someplace where I can no longer."

"Link…" she whispered.

Her tone sounded more broken than he had ever heard it before. Without another word, she squeezed her eyes shut, turned her back upon him. Slowly, she began ascending the steps that led to the platform where the mirror stood with the same sad presence as the glistening moon before it vanished to separate the night from day. But that was not the only way it had to be; the moon could hang in the sky at the same time as the sun, he suddenly realized. Without moving or lifting his head, he spoke softly as he recalled the time they had once spent hiding from a blizzard in a cave.

"When the three goddesses first fashioned hylians and their other beings, every one of their creations had two heads, four arms, and four legs," he whispered softly. "The people they had created were happy because they were strong but the goddesses soon became displeased with their creations; they feared their strength to be too great. So, in anger, and precaution, they spilt every one of them in two."

She stopped suddenly. He could see the tension drain out of her fractionally.

"It's why we have shadows," she sarcastically with a small bitter laugh, but her voice also held a sadness he would not have been able to name had he not been feeling himself.

"No," he said, his voice still soft.

He took a breath and then spoke on.

"It is why people search; and can sometimes spend their whole lives constantly seeking to find their other half. It is why they are lucky when they do because… despite being two separate people, they still share the same soul."

He was caught off guard as she suddenly threw herself at him and held him in an embrace. It was the largest display of affectionate emotion he had ever seen from her and, despite the graveness of the situation, he felt his mouth quirking in a foolish grin.

"Link, I…" Midna said softly, but did not finish. She did not need to. Just as before, he knew what she would have said. He knew because it was something he had wanted to say himself for a long time.

She leaned in close to his face and whispered.

"That seemed surprisingly deep for you," she smirked.

He feigned indignance, "I can have my moments."

"I'm sure." She murmured, shaking her head with a smile. She pressed her forehead against his before they both turned , looking back at the mirror as they stood side by side in the ruins of the Arbiter's grounds in the midst of a shimmering desert.

A single question hummed through the air. Could it be possible for that to work between two worlds as well? Was it better to join a world with its shadow rather than separate them? If the two standing there with arms intertwined were anything to judge by, then it just might be so.

* * *

**Thank you all for reading, feedback is always appreciated! The legend that Link told is highly reminiscent of that mentioned in Aristophanes speech, of Plato's Symposium so I can take no credit, though the interpretation is my own. His work also gave me the inspiration for a few of my metaphors.**

**Question: In your opinion, do you think it would have been ok for Midna not to have shattered the mirror, or was it for the best that she did?**

**Storm Dragon Wolf Princess:** Thank you so much for all the support and help you often give me on my writing projects, I hope you found your oneshot satisfactory! I know you were hoping for a Link and Midna wedding-like thing, but try as I might, it was not working out for me. I could not seem to write anything along those lines that was not atrociously cheesy. So, I went with the next best thing; the circumstances that could lead up to it (I hope you found it alright despite the fact it is the steps that could lead to the circumstance rather than the circumstance itself) :D


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